Ghostbusters: First Trailer For Reboot Arrives

The first trailer for Paul Feig’s much-anticipated reboot of the Ghostbusters has arrived, giving us our first real look at the all-female cast.

Check out the first trailer below and be prepared for your expectations to be checked. This is undoubtedly, a reboot and not a sequel:

Plenty of call-backs to the original, an updated look on the ghosts but still keeping in with a “cameo” from Slimer. Ghostbusters tech looks familiar but is definitely updated, along with a snazzy looking “ghost trap.” Oh! And Chris Hemsworth.

What seems to be rubbing most people the wrong way with the release of the trailer is that it is very apparent that Feig and co. are going for a reboot and not a sequel. For years now, there had been different variations of a Ghostbusters 3 with scripts from Ray himself, Dan Aykroyd insight from Ivan Reitman and so on.

Feig addressed the reboot vs. sequel controversy after being asked about the pressure that comes with taking on the Ghostbusters brand. He went on to expand on why he thought another Ghostbusters movie was a good idea, and why he didn’t want to just make a third chapter of the story we knew:

“This is such an amazing franchise, with two amazing movies, but it could just keep going! There’s so many things you can do with it. It just seemed terrible to leave it in a box. And yet, at the same time, there’s something exciting about the idea of bringing it to a new generation, but this time… see an origin story of them. I know some people are like, ‘Why is it not a sequel instead of a reboot?’ I didn’t like the idea, personally, of them being handed technology – ‘Here’s how to do this.’ I want to see it develop!”

With screenwriter and co-producer Katie Dippold adding:

“One of the reasons to do it this way is that it’s just like today’s modern times. Like science doesn’t believe in ghosts anymore. So to say that [ghosts] had existed for the past 30 years, it’s just a different world. And in the original it’s so fun when ghosts unleash upon the city for the first time. It’s just a fun thing, we didn’t wanna skip over it.”

The creative decision to switch the genders on Ghostbusters, Feig explained: “Ghostbusters are for everybody. The first movie worked because it had four of the funniest people and I just want the funniest people — and the funniest people are these women.” To which Katie Dippold added, “This is a story, if you placed men in those characters, you could do it. It’s pretty genderless.”

What can we expect as far as music? You can definitely hear a stripped down piano version of the main tune play at the start of the trailer but how much more can we expect? Feig says it’s essential to have a portion of the original Ray Parker Jr. title song in the movie. There also will be a new version of that tune. As to whether they’re reusing Elmer Bernstein’s famous score, Feig said that composer Theodore Shapiro is “doing an amazing theme and we’re playing with a lot of different themes. I want this to be big, spooky and cool.”

Sony also has a male-counterpart Ghostbusters in the works as announced with Channing Tatum producing and Joe and Anthony Russo directing.

Paul Feig is an incredibly confident comedy director who has tackled several action-comedy hybrids to acclaim and success in the form of The Heat and Spy. It’s fair to say that this new Ghostbusters reboot, though will step on many a fan’s nostalgia obsessed toes, could be something entertaining at the very least.